All camo patterns have use somewhere within California from woodland up north to snow in the winter mountains.

I live out in Riverside where there's pleny of green as long as the California aquaduct keeps flowing. Within a few weeks of that not flowing then this place is going to change back to deserty but darn quick. Out in the Barstow/Victorville high desert area I tested six color (chocolate chip) and three color desert camo with my wife. I had her put on a jacket and matching hat and stand in the open on a rock, down at the base of some rocks, and then out in the bush. We communiated with walkie talkies. Even knowing where she was at it was darn hard to find her - darn hard even at ranges as close at 75 yards. When she would move I could find her but once she stopped the camo worked wonders. You would not want to play "where's Waldo" with an armed opponent wearing camo.

I found that the 6 color patterns were a bit darker and fit slightly better with the rocks and the 3 color fit better out in the bush. But wearing either one in the other's better location wouldn't be that "bad". So in my closet I have woodland greens, three and six color desert, and even some flexlar green that I'm experimenting with.

Camo is so wonderful as the shooter can be anywhere within 360 degrees and at ranges from point blank out to several hundred yards. There are so many places to hide in a area that big that a target moving around though that area has a hard time seeing that many things. Keep your movement and scent down and you'll be sure to fill your tag.

You have to get out and test your stuff in your local area. I take into concideration that I'm going to do much of my "hunting" after a major earthquake where the water lines are going to be cut. That means for awhile woodland (and I have plenty of Navy issue BDU's left) and then desert camo's are going to work better.

I've got examples of just about every modern pattern laying around.  I would have to say that overall, as much as I hate being a bandwagon type of guy, the best is MultiCam.

The desert MARPAT is very good as well.  It works well in everything from high desert to the grassy/rocky areas that seem to make up so much of CA.  The temperate MARPAT is probably at its best only in dense green areas like the Pac Northwest or heavy forest.

I'm still not sold on ACU.  It doesn't seem right everyplace I put it to check its visibility.  Then again, I've seen plenty of pics of it in operation and it seems to do fine at a good distance.

kasudyo makes an excellent point.  Good old fashioned khaki is probably near, if not as, effective as most camo patters, especially once it's nice and stained/dirty.

This is something the guys in the survival forum mention often.  They want to be able to walk along a sidewalk without screaming "military" but immediately walk into the brush and blend in as well.